LOS ANGELES (December 17, 2008)
– In its first analysis of
online media, the
Parents Television Council™
found that extremely graphic
content and harsh profanity are
just a click away for kids
entering seemingly innocent
search terms on YouTube, the
most popular destination for
online video that has undertaken
several policies to control
inappropriate content. The PTC’s
latest study, The “New”
Tube, not only analyzes
content in 280 of the most
popular YouTube videos between
March and October 2008 according
to Compete Data Hub, but also
takes into account the text
commentary and advertisements
that were available alongside
the videos.

“Just as the number of
entertainment options is growing
by leaps and bounds with new and
emerging technologies, so too
are the risks that parents face
when trying to protect their
children from inappropriate
material. Our study today marks
the PTC’s first foray into
analyzing content in digital
media, and as such we wanted to
help parents with the most
popular online video resource –
YouTube,” said PTC President Tim
Winter.

“While we applaud YouTube for
its commitment to gating
procedures and its recently
announced plans to curb
inappropriate content, the core
implication of our analysis is
that the site isn’t doing enough
to protect kids.

“Children who use YouTube to
search for video clips of their
favorite stars like Miley Cyrus
and the Jonas Brothers are
exposed to some of the most
offensive profanity in the
English language. Video searches
for these popular terms showed
that YouTube’s gating procedures
do not extend to text
commentary.

“And despite YouTube’s policy of
not hosting sexually graphic
videos, entering any number of
popular search terms produced
videos linked to ads for
triple-X pornography – often
without even requiring age
verification.

“With nearly half of boys and a
third of girls ages 13-17 naming
YouTube as one of their top
three favorite websites, no
parent can afford to ignore
these findings. The results of
this study should serve as a
wake-up call for any parent
concerned about graphic or
indecent material on websites
they perceive to be ‘safe’ for
their children,” said Winter.

Major Findings:

Children entering such
“child-friendly” search terms as
Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers,
High School Musical and
Hannah Montana were
confronted with highly offensive
content in the accompanying text
commentary posted by other site
users:

Viewing 20 YouTube videos
under each “teen idol”
search term produced a total
of 422 instances of explicit
content within the text
commentary that accompanies
the videos.

An average of 68% of those
comments included profanity
and 31% of the profanity was
of the most offensive nature
(e.g. the f, s, and
b-words).

The 20 highest-ranked YouTube
videos from each of the site’s
most popular search terms
yielded an extraordinary amount
of graphic and adult-themed
content:

For example, 98 percent of
the videos analyzed under
the popular search term “Lil
Wayne” did not require any
form of age verification,
despite containing high
levels of explicit adult
content. In fact, 50 percent
of the videos that were
associated with the rapper
featured verbalized
non-muted expletives,
including the s-word,
b-word, several variations
of the f-word, and explicit
references to human anatomy.

Twenty-eight percent of the
videos resulting from the
search term “porn” did not
require any form of age
verification.

“YouTube’s status as the leading
site for online video combined
with the fact that more and more
children are consuming
entertainment media outside the
confines of a television set
underscore our demand for more
responsibility,” Winter stated.

“The Parents Television Council
urges YouTube to take its
commitment to being a ‘safe’
site even further by
implementing new policies that
extend to user comments,
advertisements and InVideo
links. These policies should be
augmented by formulating and
adopting a thorough, accurate
and transparent content rating
system that would allow parents
to block material they deem
inappropriate for their
children. In addition, we call
on advertisers who support
YouTube to carefully evaluate
the content they are
underwriting with their
advertising dollars,” Winter
concluded.

To speak with a representative
from the Parents Television Council, please contact Kelly Oliver
(ext. 140) or Megan Franko (ext. 148) at (703) 683-5004.

The Parents Television Council™ (www.parentstv.org®)
is a non-partisan education organization advocating responsible entertainment.
It was founded in 1995 to ensure that children are not constantly assaulted by sex, violence
and profanity on television and in other media. This national
grassroots organization has more than 1.3 million members across the
United States, and works with television producers, broadcasters,
networks and sponsors in an effort to stem the flow of harmful and
negative messages targeted to children. The PTC also works with
elected and appointed government officials to enforce broadcast
decency standards. Most importantly, the PTC produces critical
research and publications documenting the dramatic increase in sex,
violence and profanity in entertainment. This information is
provided free of charge so parents can make informed viewing choices
for their own families.

Parents Television Council,
www.parentstv.org, PTC,
Clean Up TV Now, Because our children are watching, The
nation's most influential advocacy organization, Protecting
children against sex, violence and profanity in
entertainment, Parents Television Council Seal of Approval,
and Family Guide to Prime Time Television
are trademarks of the Parents Television Council.